


A Burglar's Heart

by VeyJo



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Grown ups, M/M, Smut, eventually, or more like Sawamura taming Kuroo, royal au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-24
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2018-11-18 06:15:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11285370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VeyJo/pseuds/VeyJo
Summary: He smirked to himself when the tall and heavy gates of the palace came in sight. At least three guards were glued to the ground every two meters, looking forward with their stern gaze as they held their shield up to their stomach. No thief –for famous that they were– had ever trespassed those gates successfully, but this was a piece of cake for Kuroo, he knew.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I love when Bokuto is the King.

Walking down the crowded streets of the market, Kuroo Tetsurou tried to make his way to the palace without drawing much attention, though wearing a dark cloak over his head with that heat wasn’t making him go unnoticed, but at least people couldn’t see his face easily and that worked.

He smirked to himself when the tall and heavy gates of the palace came in sight. At least three guards were glued to the ground every two meters, looking forward with their stern gaze as they held their shield up to their stomach. No thief –for famous that they were– had ever trespassed those gates successfully, but this was a piece of cake for Kuroo, he knew.

* * *

“Your Majesty, we found this thief trying to sneak into the palace,” a short, yet muscular guard announced as he threw Kuroo to the carpeted floor. Kuroo fell to his knees and tried to not fall over, now with his hands tied behind his back.

“Careful, will ya? I haven’t stolen anything yet,” he smirked.

The guard arched an eyebrow, his face just looking serious, and took off the cloak from him to allow the King to see his face.

The King stood up from his throne and slowly, one step right after the other, he approached the thief.

“Your Majesty, your steps are still too heavy. Remember, your feet as feathers,” pointed out his assistant, whom wasn’t even watching him as he took notes on his journal.

The King puffed his cheeks a little and took the two lasts steps more carefully. Then he turned to look at his assistant for validation. The man nodded, still not lifting his gaze from his writing. “Better,” he said.

The King beamed and turned back to look at the man in front of him. The thief looked up at him and smirked. “What!?” The King exclaimed, pulling Kuroo up to his feet in one single motion. “Kuroo, my old friend!” He laughed and hugged him tightly.

“Long time no see, Bo…” Kuroo smiled a little and just leaned against him since he couldn’t move his hands.

“Ah, Daichi, let go of him!”

“But… Your Majesty, Kuroo Tetsurou is a well-known thief in the kingdom and it could be–”

“Nonsense!” Bokuto interrupted. “He’s been my friend for years and I’m sure you wouldn’t steal anything from me, right?” He grinned.

“… Nothing too big at least,” he snorted.

“You see?” Bokuto nodded eagerly and motioned Daichi to untie Kuroo’s hands.

Sawamura Daichi inhaled and looked over at Akaashi for an instant. Akaashi only lowered his journal and observed the scene, his face expressionless. Sawamura tried not to show on his face that he was against his King’s orders, but he was way too transparent and honest. Even so, he obliged and undid the knot around Kuroo’s wrists.

Kuroo rubbed his hand against his wrist; that man really knew how to tie a knot, Jesus. But that was no longer important when he noticed Bokuto impatiently bouncing on his heels, wanting attention. Kuroo chuckled and smiled at him, reaching to hug him properly this time. Bokuto hugged him again, all smiles.

“I really missed you, Kuroo,” he commented before pulling away from their embrace. “Now tell me why you’ve been stealing stuff! You could have gone to jail if you were caught, dummy!” He frowned, placing his heavy hands on Kuroo shoulders.

“Hm, difficult times, Bo,” he shrugged a little, looking away from him.

It honestly didn’t make him proud to be a recognized burglar in his best friend’s kingdom, but it was either that or starving to death… Though he knew that was his situation years ago, now it was because it became easy and a habit to him, this lifestyle.  

“Say no more, I’m hiring you then!” He smiled and nodded firmly. That caught the attention of his assistant, who raised his eyebrows at his King. “Daichi, teach him everything you know. Kuroo will be a royal guard from now on.”

“What? Bokuto, that’s not–”

“You aren’t in place to disobey your King,” Akaashi explained, now beside Bokuto, one step behind from him. “As the King’s adviser, I may remind him that he’s got no power to overlook Kuroo Tetsurou’s crimes, therefore you should be taken to jail immediately.”

“Akaashi,” Bokuto called softly, looking back at him with big, sad eyes. Kuroo was also surprised at his statement, his mouth had form a thin, tense line, his worry showing in his jawline.

“But King Bokuto’s order can be taken as a punishment for your previous actions, which is a better idea than locking you up in a dark, nasty cell in which you will not be gaining or strengthening any good value. As a royal guard, you will be given a room in the barracks, three meals a day and the freedom to make use of the palace’s facilities as the library, the garden and others. Your salary though, will be used to pay everything you stole to their respective owners. Once that’s paid, you will be allowed to keep working here as a regular, or you could take your leave as any citizen. Now, please tell us your decision; if the answer is negative, Captain Sawamura will take you to jail right away.”

“Woah, Akaashi,” Kuroo raised his eyebrows, smirking slightly. “Well, if you put it that way, I guess I will be staying. I heard you guys have a huge pool,” he joked.

Akaashi just stared at him for a second too long before writing something down on his journal. “Very well. Captain, please escort him to his room. By this evening, I will have his new clothes ready,” he ordered before taking his leave.

“… The aloof vibe of him is driving me crazy,” Bokuto whispered to Kuroo, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

“Hm, that hasn’t changed,” he nudged Bokuto and chuckled.

“You haven’t changed either, Kuroo Pain-in-the-ass Tetsurou,” he said before closing the door behind him.

“Shit, he heard us,” Bokuto winced.

“Language, Your Majesty,” Kuroo laughed.

Then Sawamura cleared his throat and straightened up. “Soldier, follow me to the barracks,” he said before bowing at Bokuto and turning around to leave the room.

Kuroo chuckled and looked at Bokuto. “He’s always that stiff, or…?”

“You better do what he says, Kuroo,” Bokuto smiled sheepishly, trying not to meet Sawamura’s angry look.

Kuroo changed his expression to a serious one and followed Sawamura out of the place then.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> King Bokuto reigns my heart.

Kuroo took the opportunity of being walked by Sawamura over to his new room to take a look around the place he was going to live in the next months, maybe years if it was necessary.

The building had many towers, at least four floors high, each having big windows to let as much sunlight in as it was possible. There were huge gardens surrounding it; different trees, a few carrying exotic and others common fruits in their branches, many bushes and flowers. As they kept walking, the trees disappeared to be replaced by a large square of soil, having little plants growing in it. He wondered what that was, since it looked organized, with signs in each separate line, probably to indicate the name of those plants. It didn’t look like one of Bokuto’s interests.

They kept walking and Kuroo wondered if they were ever going to make it to the barracks. Just how big this place was? He had gotten tired of seeing trees and more trees and rose bushes everywhere. He sighed and finally turned his gaze to lock it on Sawamura’s back. The man hadn’t opened his mouth in all the time since they left the room in which Bokuto received them. Was he really that stiff? Well, he had to be since he was the Captain of the royal guards; Kuroo thought he looked reliable and brave. Also, he had no doubt that Sawamura was strong just by looking at his thick legs and broad shoulders. He was glad that his best friend was at least in good hands. It wasn’t like Bokuto wasn’t strong himself; Kuroo was sure he would at least make it difficult for Sawamura to win an arm wrestling competition against him, but Bokuto had a heart of gold… To the extent that Kuroo doubted he would kill anyone, even if that meant to save his own life. Now, maybe all the how-to-be-a-king teaching made Bokuto change that, and Kuroo would feel relief if it had been that way.

Back to Sawamura, Kuroo could only think nice things about the guy, but being as stiff as he was, that only made Kuroo’s instinct to tease him wake up, but to make it clear, Kuroo’s intention wasn’t as shallow as that; Sawamura had something magnetically interesting to Kuroo, and he wanted to know why. He smirked slightly and took a few steps faster than the ones he kept all the way from the room to catch up with him. He leaned in a little so Sawamura could notice him and grinned.

Sawamura noticed him indeed, that crazy hairstyle was hard to ignore, but didn’t dare to turn to face him. He already thought that Kuroo Tetsurou was annoying, and more than that, he was a thief.

Sawamura had wanted to be a guard since he can remember; he was only a child and was already telling his parents that he would protect them no matter what. He got so into it, other reasons and passion adding in, that he even got to be a royal guard, would you look at that. Of course, he was against keeping Kuroo in, more if he was going to be a guard! You needed vocation to develop well in this kind of job.

He sighed heavily as he closed his eyes, collecting his thoughts and feelings to convey them in a good resolution. He knew Bokuto made good decisions based on his guts, he respected that. He couldn’t allow himself to do that though; he couldn’t trust his King’s life to his stomach, if there was 0.5% that he could be in danger, it was trouble to go that way. But he could trust his King’s reasoning and was doomed to obey him anyway, even if he was free to argue.

He sighed again, opening his eyes. Well, for now he had to deal with the thief with crazy hair. He moved his face to look at Kuroo, who was still grinning at him. Didn’t his cheeks hurt from smiling for that long? Sawamura arched a brow and took another looked at Kuroo from head to toe. He had soft eyes, huh? Strong arms, calloused hands, long legs, his clothes were ripped off as if a cat had scratched them… And something told him he deserved a second chance. Well, he was trying, right?

“Daichi~”

“Respect your Captain,” he said immediately with his firm and low voice, reaching to hit his stomach. That was responded by a gasp from Kuroo, now holding his stomach. “From now on, refer to me as ‘Captain’; we’re not friends, I’m your superior and if you don’t obey, you’ll be punished.” That he deserved a second chance didn’t mean he would go easy on him.

“Sawamura, that was uncalled for,” he grunted.

Sawamura raised his eyebrows. He couldn’t follow a simple instruction? Or was this on purpose?

“As soon as you get your new clothes, you’ll be running three laps around the castle for calling me other than ‘Captain’.”

“Three laps!? Have you ever seen the–” he couldn’t finish his sentence since Sawamura’s eyes were like daggers pointing at his jugular. “… Yes, Captain,” he muttered, sighing. It apparently wasn’t going to be as easy to make this guy unwind. Well, what was he expecting, considering how they met.

Kuroo looked to the side for a second and perked up. The scenery had changed drastically with the presence of another building with many doors and windows. It was shorter that the castle, but it probably housed more people.  It looked decent though.

He looked back at Sawamura that now was motioning him to follow into the building. Kuroo obliged, looking around again. At least it looked clean, with no ratholes as he had expected it to be. Then he furrowed his eyebrows at himself. Naturally, King Bokuto Koutaro took care of his guards.

Sawamura headed over to the second door counting from the right of the building and knocked on the door. Kuroo raised his eyebrows and waited, wondering if he would be introduced to someone, and why would he be introduced to someone. Soon enough the door opened, revealing a shorter guy with spiky hair and tanned skin, wearing clothes slightly similar to Sawamura’s; the same black boots and pants, but he was only wearing a white shirt. Sawamura wore a buttoned-up shirt instead, colors matching the kingdom’s. White over all, the neck golden yellow and gold buttons.

“Captain?” The man asked before moving his eyes to lay them on Kuroo. His eyebrows furrowed almost instantly and Kuroo felt very welcomed, if sarcasm was allowed.

“Iwaizumi, I’m sorry for bothering you on your day off, but you’re the only one that doesn’t room with anyone. King Bokuto ordered to instruct Kuroo Tetsurou as a soldier as punishment for his crimes,” Sawamura quickly explained to an arms-crossed-over-his-chest Iwaizumi, that no longer stared at Kuroo with anger in his eyes. He looked at his captain directly.

“Hm,” Iwaizumi nodded and looked for a second back into his room. Well, he had no option if his captain was asking him such a favor, even though the captain himself didn’t room with anyone either… But well, Iwaizumi was the one with an extra bed. “I’ll arrange the room for him, I kind of made use of the extra space,” he said as he shrugged, going back into the room.

Kuroo perked up at that. Now he was sure that Sawamura was highly respected by his subordinates, just by looking at Iwaizumi’s body language and response.

“Thank you, Iwaizumi. Kuroo, help him,” Sawamura looked at him then. “Akaashi will be here eventually with your new clothes. I have to take care of a few things right now, so Iwaizumi will also explain to you a few things. If I have time before dawn, I’ll show you around.”

“I can do that,” Iwaizumi called from inside. “You have enough work on your hands now.”

“You’re not on duty ‘till nighttime, Iwaizumi,” Sawamura sighed, though he was thankful of Iwaizumi’s disposition.

“It’s fine, I would like to have a talk with him if we’re going to sleep in the same room from now on.”

“Thank you,” Sawamura nodded firmly and turned to face Kuroo then. “Behave. And don’t forget the three laps once you’re ready,” he said before walking off.

Kuroo watched him go with his eyebrows up. Was that an almost-smirk he saw at the corners of Sawamura’s lips?

“Hey, Crazy Hair,” Iwaizumi was back at the door, frowning at him. “I’m not making your bed so come help me a little.”

Kuroo made a face and nodded, following him inside.

 

* * *

 

 

After Iwaizumi piled up his stuff on his side of the room and Kuroo dusted off his own, making the bed in the process, he sat down on it, suddenly feeling the weariness weighing on his shoulders. After all, he hadn’t been getting much sleep that week, and it was fair to add that he had walked kilometers to get to the castle, without eating properly either. If that wasn’t enough, he had to deal with the feeling of almost getting arrested. His eyelids felt heavy, his eyeballs itchy.

“Hey,” Iwaizumi called, looking at him with a stern gaze. “What were you trying to do?”

“Huh?” Kuroo’s forehead wrinkled when he looked up at him.

“You trespassed the castle’s gates for a reason. I want to know why.”

Kuroo smirked slightly and placed his hands behind him on the bed to be able to lean back a little. “Well, what do you think? By the look on your face when you saw me outside, I could tell you perfectly knew who I am. Kuroo Tetsurou, the black cat thief.”

“Of course I would know that; what kind of soldier would I be if I didn’t,” he rolled his eyes. “I still want to know why you did it.”

“Well, to steal something, get to sell that and get new clothes. Autumn is coming and I don’t want to freeze to death,” he shrugged.

“Why don’t you work,” Iwaizumi inquired, his arms crossed again.

“Stealing is easier, isn’t it?” Kuroo smirked.

“I bet it is, to your nasty hands. Why does King Bokuto trust you?” He pointed at him with his chin.

“Ah, we’re childhood friends,” Kuroo’s smirk softened a little then. “I thought he wouldn’t really get mad if I stole something small.”

“If you’re so close, why didn’t you ask for it? It could have been easier, no?”

Kuroo looked at him with a more serious expression now. It was true, it would have been easier, it would have been less reprehensible. Was it really that used to this lifestyle that facing his friend to ask a favor to help him out of the poverty was harder than stealing something from him? That only showed how ashamed was Kuroo of himself. He had long stopped robbing from necessity, right? So looking at Bokuto in the eyes, his friend that had such a noble soul and would forgive him for his crimes, was indeed harder that stealing from him and never meet again with him.

Kuroo let out a breathy snort and looked away. What a despicable human he had become.

“And?” Iwaizumi asked again, already annoyed that the guy was only laughing instead of answering him.

“Because I don’t want Bokuto to just pat my shoulder and tell me that I’m doing what I can, and that I eventually will turn back to the right path. I stabbed his back multiple times, and he knows that, and he will still look at him with forgiveness in his eyes,” he answered, though he hadn’t met Iwaizumi’s eyes again.

“What a loser,” Iwaizumi snarled. “If you care about King Bokuto that much, just quit pitying yourself and pull yourself together. I mean, he already did that for you, didn’t he? He forced you into being a guard while giving you clothes and food to eat. Pay him back,” he stated before going to get his jacket. “Get ready, we’re going to get dinner.”

Kuroo followed him with his eyes and placed his hands on his knees as he waited, his fingers firmly pressed against his bones. What the fuck, he had been scolded by a short man with spiky hair. But he knew he was right, he always knew he was right, and yet here he was. Well, well, enough of being a loser, no?

 

* * *

 

 

Sawamura was walking down the large corridor inside the castle. He had had a few hours of administrative work and now was going over to the canteen to silence his grumbling stomach, but something unusual caught his eye. He turned to look out the window, down to the gardens. There was Kuroo Tetsurou, running as he had instructed him. Sawamura snorted and put his elbow on the windowsill, resting his chin on his hand, watching him.

“Having a little fun with the Pain-in-the-ass guy?” Akaashi’s voice was heard and Sawamura only nodded, still watching him run. “I just went to deliver his clothes, so this is his first lap.”

“Hmm, quite obedient, after all,” Sawamura mumbled into his hand.

“Are you going to tease him all the time?”

“I’m allowed to have a laugh from time to time, aren’t I?” Sawamura smirked, looking back at Akaashi. “I know you’re enjoying this too.”

“I must thank you one day for this,” he smiled a little and bowed his head before walking off.

Sawamura smiled a little and straightened up, walking off to the opposite direction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! This chapter is longer! Yay!  
> I hope you guys like this one. I kind of feel guilty for adding Iwaizumi without adding Oikawa, sobs.  
> Anyway, thanks for reading and commenting! Comments are always really appreaciated uvu  
> See you next chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> on how to tame Kuroo Tetsurou

It had been two weeks since the arrival of the new royal guard Kuroo Tetsurou, and it hadn’t been all that easy for anyone. First, our poor ex thief had been paying off his punishments until late in the night– he knew he wasn’t poor for being put to do heavy physical effort, and know he was wondering if Sawamura was usually this patient or he was just a special case. It was probably the first option that was true.

It wasn’t like Sawamura had fun– at least not all the times– when he had to give Kuroo a punishment. Within the two weeks he had been coexisting with the former most wanted thief in the kingdom, he grew fond of the idea that Kuroo had potential; good musculature, high height, fast on his feet, focused (dependable of the situation and how angry the face his captain made looked) and… Could he say _reliable_ just yet? It had only been fourteen days; Sawamura couldn’t let his guard down around him. He didn’t want to be betrayed by him.

And he didn’t want to be betrayed by him because he already trusted him. Being in position in the political scale, treasons were to be expected and Sawamura had to always be prepared to fight the ones behind them. Most of the times it didn’t hurt him, sometimes it was really obvious he was going to be stabbed by that one person, and he could go on easily with his life, without grudges, after the problem was taken care of. But we all know letting go of a betrayal is more difficult when you had a connection with them.

Kuroo was smart, sharp, easy going and sometimes, just _some_ times, fun to be around. One time Sawamura even had to swallow down a laugh before sending him off to pay with push-ups his boldness. That was all there was to Kuroo; his poor etiquette education and morale. Sawamura was ready to tame him into an unimpeachable royal guard.

* * *

 

When taming a beast is not all punishment; you also have to treat it and let them know they are progressing. Sawamura didn’t know exactly how to reward his wild animal yet; he didn’t want the other to start thinking he could treat him like an equal and go back to annoy him with his boldness.

He sighed heavily and leaned his back and head against the cold, stony wall of the outsides of the castle. He had been taking a little rest and fresh air, sitting on one of the many benches around the garden, after sparring for a while with Iwaizumi.

“That was indeed a long sigh,” he heard a soft voice coming from his right and turned to see the owner. “Are you perhaps tired after training? That would be unusual.”

Sawamura smiled a little and sat up, though his position was still relaxed. Maybe the sudden visit of this special person could help him. “No… Well, maybe mentally tired with all the things I have to put up with,” he said, though he didn’t feel like that that day specially.

“Hm,” the person agreed and turned a little, giving the back to Sawamura, to walk towards the large square of soil with medicinal plants growing. He knelt down, took off the hood from his head, and started picking up the branches that were ready. “Is it because of Kuroo Tetsurou?”

“Sharp as usual, Kozume,” Daichi said, staying in his spot.

“It’s not difficult to know; he looks like a pain in–” he cleared his throat, “like a handful, to say the least,” he sighed a little and continued with his task. “Has he done something reproachable?”

“I also think he’s a pain, you could have said it,” Sawamura chuckled and shrugged. “No, on the contrary, he’s been progressing.” That response caused a reaction from Kozume, though it was a small shoulder lifting Sawamura barely noticed. “Although I have to punish him every three hours, he ought to be a good soldier.”

“He’s a thief,” Kozume didn’t wait to say, though his tone was neutral. “Are you really considering him to be your right hand?”

“That’s Iwaizumi, but–”

“So you are,” Kozume said, standing up and turning to face him.

“I’m only giving him a second chance.”

Kozume made a face and looked away, towards one of the palace’s entrances.

“Don’t go yet, I want to ask you something,” Sawamura cleared his throat. “And it’s about him.”

Kozume perked up and looked back at him, though his expression continued to be neutral. “We could give him frog’s–”

“It’s,” Sawamura tried not to snort as he interrupted him, “I want to reward him for behaving these past two weeks. What do you think would be a good idea?”

“He deserves _nothing_.”

“Kozume…”

“You just said you had to punish him every three hours, Sawamura,” he said, arching an eyebrow.

“I know, but I have my reasons,” Sawamura sighed. Why was he defending Kuroo so much? His initial plan was if Kozume considered a waste of time rewarding him, he was going to go back to his office to work and not think of that nasty cat for a good while, but yet here he was.

Kozume sighed slightly. “Alcohol. Men like him always are grateful of alcohol. Now I’m off to make some salve. I hope you don’t grow white hairs while educating him,” he nodded at him quite formally and left.

Sawamura snorted and watched him go before looking up at his longest strands of hair –he couldn’t see much since he always kept his hair really short, but he was sure his jet black hair wouldn’t last that long at this rate. He inhaled deeply before standing up and leaving off to work.

* * *

 

When it was almost night time, Sawamura called to his office Iwaizumi along with Kuroo. The latter was rather reluctant to go, since going to your boss’ office was never good, but before he could even ask anything, Iwaizumi just grabbed his arm and walked him there.

Iwaizumi knocked on the door and Sawamura let them in, calling from inside that it was open. They both entered and Sawamura snorted when he saw Iwaizumi still holding Kuroo by his elbow.

Kuroo raised his eyebrows. “You can let go of me, I’m not going to escape.”

Sawamura smiled a little and nodded at Iwaizumi. He obliged and walked over to Sawamura’s desk, taking a seat and grabbing the glass with light brown liquid inside. Kuroo watched all this and was surprised again. He blinked a few times and approached as well, slowly taking a seat.

“… Do you guys have drinking meetings?” He asked, his eyebrows furrowed, as he also took his glass. “Daichi, I knew you weren’t a–” he stopped himself. Sawamura was already pinching the bridge of his nose in regret and Iwaizumi had his eyeballs seeing his brain. “Captain,” Kuroo smirked and lifted his glass towards Sawamura before taking a small sip. Good rum.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's been like a year hahahahah;;;;;;;;;  
> im sorry im trying sobs


	4. Chapter 4

Kuroo was wary around Sawamura.

Sawamura was a good man. He was loyal, patient, hard-worker, empathetic… Ha gave Kuroo a second chance and he himself could feel it in the way they interacted; Sawamura was not just obeying his King’s orders. In a way, that made Kuroo feel guiltier about the whole situation of being there, treated like a normal citizen.

That’s one of the reasons he’s wary of his captain; he doesn’t want to annoy him, to make him work harder. Sawamura had his hands full already. In this month, Kuroo had seen him work his ass off every day: Not counting the actual task of dealing with _him_ , he wakes up with the sun (maybe a little earlier, but Kuroo hadn’t been able to confirm that). After breakfast he goes around the barracks to check on every guard, and then he trains with them until lunch. After lunch, he likes to spar with anyone who’s available. Then he’s off to his office to do paperwork (a lot of it), and sometimes he also takes night time patrolling, because “not because I’m the captain means I get to throw all the nasty work to my subordinates.” Kuroo thinks that very reliable of him and that’s cool, but when does he get, like… Some sleep? Kuroo sometimes catches himself watching Sawamura to see if he ever yawns. He hadn’t had the pleasure to discover him yet.

Anyway, even if he wants to cause the less trouble to his captain, he dies for the opportunity to talk freely with him, without the while captain – subordinate dynamic that he knew he had to respect for some reason. Still, Sawamura always appeared interesting to talk to. Maybe because Kuroo thought they were very different, and he wanted to know why.

He still couldn’t believe Sawamura had given him the chance and he had lost it. Though he was very surprised about being asked to drink rum with his captain, and so he spent the opportunity trying to figure out why he had been given the chance. And Iwaizumi was there.

He wanted to be alone with Sawamura, watch his movements, his facial expressions from first line.

Kuroo blinked at that thought. It was late at night; he was laying on his bed, trying to sleep, while all that kept his mind working was Sawamura. That was weird. Or maybe not, he thought. After all, Sawamura was nice, he had been really loyal to Bokuto and it was only natural to want to get along with him. Kuroo shrugged and rolled onto his side to try sleeping again, closing his eyes. Trying to keep his mental images as a black square all the time, suddenly Sawamura’s back popped up in his mind; his strong neck, sweat droplets sliding down his spine, toned shoulders…

Kuroo opened his eyes and stared at the white wall in front of him. That could be explained; he was horny. After all, it had been a good while since the last time he got laid and Sawamura was his type. He smirked to himself and shook his head before closing his eyes again.

* * *

 

In the morning, Iwaizumi wakes him up by the sounds he makes at getting out of bed. Kuroo is quick to rise after that. Last time he gave himself the most wanted five-more-minutes, he was smacked on the face by Iwaizumi’s foot. First and last time he ever dared to do that. He also thought Iwaizumi should get feet perfume or something.

They both didn’t wait for Sawamura to go for them, they made their way to get some breakfast and then to the training camp along with the other soldiers. Everything went on as usual; running three laps around the castle, series of push-ups, crunches, squats, etc. Pair work, group work in which they fought each other until Sawamura called it off. Then they all went to shower before going to get their lunch.

Kuroo was always the last one to leave the showers, because he wasn’t really fond of cold water. After everyone had used the showers, the water came a little warmer. Once he managed to more or less dry his hair with a cloth, he turned towards the exit, where he found Sawamura waiting for him. He raised his eyebrows and smirked slightly, just standing in front of his captain.

Sawamura looked at him from the corner of his eye. “Care to finally show off your fighting skills to me?”

“Oh?” Kuroo smirked, “last time you mentioned my fighting skills you made it sound I fought like a coward, captain.”

“Well, let’s see how much you’ve improved. After you finish your lunch, meet me at the camp,” Sawamura said as he finally turned to face him.

Kuroo had to bite down his tongue so it didn’t move to form the sequence of words to say “ _is that a date?”_ and just limited himself to nod his head. “Of course, captain.”

Sawamura nodded and left Kuroo alone, wondering what was all this sudden approaching. After their “drinking meeting”, Sawamura had gone back to only talk to him to punish him, though he also noticed that had diminished. Kuroo sighed a little, though the smirk was still curving his lips, before going to get his lunch.

* * *

 

Sawamura was waiting for him at the training camp, cleaning his sword with a cloth. He didn’t hear Kuroo coming, which always surprised him. Sneaky as a cat was Kuroo Tetsurou. He only felt his hand on his shoulder when he was already behind him. Dangerous too.

Sawamura didn’t show he was startled and turned around to hand him the sword.

“Oh, we are getting serious,” Kuroo snorted, examining his fighting instrument. “Very well, captain,” he smirked and went to stand in his spot to start. Sawamura liked that and did the same. They both counted to three in their heads and lunged at each other to start sparring.

Kuroo had never touched a real sword until he arrived at the castle. His usual weapons were small daggers (those were easier to carry and hide, and also caused less damage to the opponent; he never had wanted to kill anybody). The first time he took a hold of a sword, he almost dropped it because of how heavy it was. He soon got used to the weight though, he wasn’t that weak.

It was still hard to manage it though, to move avidly with it as you were conscious of your opponent future movements. Kuroo was really experimented at the latter. Since he never fought to kill, he always avoided any attack. The first time Sawamura watched him fight, he thought he fought like a coward because of that; always escaping, never facing the opponent.

Now those passionate eyes were staring right into him, right into his thoughts as Kuroo tried to push him off himself with the sword.

Sawamura was really strong and fast, he had technique and passion in his fighting. Kuroo scoffed.

“Tired already?” Sawamura smirked, “we haven’t been at it for longer than fifteen minutes.”

Kuroo smirked and finally found the strength to make Sawamura back off two steps. He huffed and panted heavily. “Come at me,” he said, almost defiantly. For some reason Sawamura liked that too, and charged at him again.

Kuroo had always hated fighting, though he had been at it all his life, literally and metaphorically. It made him feel he was ever going to be able to rest; he had to be alert to anything. Sawamura fought for other reasons, though. There was fervor and warmth in him, even when holding a weapon with his strong hands. Sawamura made it seem honorable…

Pushing each other while staring into their insides through their eyes ignited something in Kuroo. It was almost fun.

They finished half an hour later. That was not even close to what he lasted with Iwaizumi, but it was enough. One, because Kuroo had showed him he was capable of fighting face to face and two, because Sawamura had ended up laying his body against Kuroo’s on the floor, and while he wasn’t really uncomfortable in the position, Kuroo’s smirk started to become attractive after a few seconds of watching him pant through it.

Sawamura stood up and held out his hand to help Kuroo do the same. “Good job,” he said with a genuine smile as he held his hand for a second too long.

Kuroo blinked. _Sawamura smiled to him_. He forced himself to get out of the staring at his white teeth and thin lips and nodded, chuckling as if it was nothing. “Thank you, captain. Did I manage to surprise you?” He asked as he handed him the sword back.

Sawamura contemplated it. “… Keep it,” he said after a few seconds, before looking up at Kuroo in the eyes.

“… Excuse me?”

“From now on you’ll be assigned a schedule for night patrol, you’ll need this if something were to happen,” he nodded at him.

Kuroo nodded slowly and looked down at his new acquisition.

* * *

 

Kuroo laid on his bed last night, trying to conceal his sleep again. Suddenly Sawamura’s honest smile popped in his head and he sighed heavily before letting a “shit” escape his mouth.

“I have a light sleep, you know,” he heard Iwaizumi mumble.

“Hell I know, last time you woke up because I sneezed.”

“You sneeze like a cat. Shut up.”

Kuroo snorted and closed his eyes again. _Shit, shit, shit_ , he screamed in his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look a this! I'm behaving.  
> I also have to beg for comments. Pretty please?


	5. Chapter 5

Sawamura is scared of Kuroo.

Don’t get him wrong; he doesn’t fear him, he’s just scared of the things Kuroo is able to achieve. In less than two weeks, Kuroo had gained Sawamura’s approval and in less than a month, Sawamura already trusted him. Considering he had been the most wanted thief in the kingdom and for definition his direct opponent. It weirded him out, Kuroo was almost magnetic.

Sawamura had given him freedom, even. He trusted him with night patrol, he trusted him with a sword, he could rob and escape from the palace anytime he wanted, he could fool anyone, but it had been two weeks since that, and Kuroo was behaving perfectly. Sawamura didn’t know if it was because Kuroo indeed cared for King Bokuto, or because he was changing. In that case, was he really that bad from the beginning?

Maybe, more than scared, Sawamura was confused, and he would like to know more about Kuroo Tetsurou. He wondered if he would ever get to that. He could always ask Akaashi, he knew those two knew each other from before, but for some reason he wanted to hear the story of Kuroo from Kuroo’s mouth.

He didn’t know if he would ever have the occasion to do so, though. Building up relationship with this kind of job was a bit difficult. He could see Kuroo was forming links with the rest of the royal guards, including grumpy Iwaizumi. It was good that they didn’t doubt him anymore.

Sawamura decided not to spar with anyone that day since he had night shift that night and he was feeling his eyes a bit tired. It was better not to push it if he wanted to focus properly.

* * *

 

Meanwhile, Bokuto and Akaashi were sitting patiently on the infirmary. The King had had a very small accident, so small he didn’t even feel pain, but left a big disaster behind. Bokuto had been signing a few documents in his office when he cut the pad of his thumb with paper. Bokuto kept working, and staining the other documents with tiny droplets of blood. Akaashi thankfully noticed before he could finish, and ignoring His Majesty saying he was fine and that it didn’t matter, he almost dragged him to the nurse.

“You could have kissed it better,” Bokuto sighed heavily, looking down at his red thumb.

“It could infect, Your Majesty. We can’t have you with an infected finger,” he shrugged.

“… Akaashi,” he whined, though he tried to do it in a low tone. “You know I don’t like doctors,” he whispered.

“I know, but you have to overcome your fear. That’s especially why we brought Kozume,” he looked at him and smiled a little. “You haven’t given him a chance to treat you; you always escape before I can bring you here,” he said, finishing his sentence with a heavy sigh.

“… But Akaashi,” he started to complain again, but then Kozume walked up to them, holding some bandage and a liquid that smell really strong. Bokuto pulled back, but the back of his head met with the wall. “Oww,” he sighed and rubbed the spot.

Kozume sighed the slightest bit and raised his eyebrows. “Your Majesty, I need you to hold out your finger.

Bokuto stole a glance at Akaashi, who nodded to encourage him. Bokuto sighed once again and did as told, a bit reluctantly. Then Kozume, being really gentle, disinfected his wound and bandaged it a bit later. “Done, was it that bad?”

Bokuto blinked and looked at him with big eyes. “Actually, it didn’t hurt at all…” He mumbled.

“You see?” Akaashi smiled a little in relief. “I told you Kozume was the best around. I expect you to come to him if you ever hurt yourself or if you feel sick, okay?”

“I will, but only if you do a tiny little favor to me,” he smiled, noticeably more relaxed now. Akaashi raised his eyebrows, as in asking him what it was. “Finish Kozume’s work and kiss it better?” He grinned, holding up his thumb.

“I thought you said it didn’t hurt…” He sighed heavily.

“Please? And I promise to come to the infirmary if I ever need it,” he nodded eagerly.

Akaashi pursed his lips into a thin line and stole a quick glance to Kozume, who was still standing in front of them. Then he gave in, and inhaling softly, leaning to leave a tiny peck on Bokuto’s bandaged finger. He could feel Kozume’s face deforming in disgust.

“Happy now? Let’s go,” he cleared his throat and stood up. Then he bowed his head to Kozume. “Thank you for your work.”

“No problem,” he nodded lightly and bowed his head at the two of them, going back to his desk to keep working.

Akaashi and Bokuto took their leave, then. Once they were a few steps away from the room, Bokuto hummed happily. “I told you I would feel better if you did it.”

“Your Majesty,” he rolled his eyes and just kept walking.

* * *

 

When night fell, Sawamura was ready to take his spot to switch shifts. He thanked the guard who was leaving before he heard Kuroo’s voice behind him. He was thanking the other guard, which meant Kuroo had a night shift too. How could he not remember they were scheduled together? As a captain he should–

“Captain?” Kuroo asked, surprised to catch him staring at him. “Well, how lucky I am, this’ll be an easy shift,” he smirked.

Sawamura snapped out of it and arched an eyebrow. “Don’t slack off just because you’re with me tonight.”

“Of course, of course, I’m professional,” he kept his smirk on and took a few steps closer to Sawamura. “… You look tired.”

“What?”

“Are you getting enough sleep? I know you don’t, look at those bags under your eyes. To be the captain of all of us you should take better care of yourself, y’know,” he said, real concern showing in his furrowed eyebrows.

“… I’m fine, don’t worry. Just focus on your job,” he said, looking away for an instant.

“Sure, I mean… Worrying about you is only to be expected, but I’ll keep my mind to any weird sound that’s most likely to be an owl catching its prey,” he half smiled and shrugged a little.

“Good,” Sawamura sighed and with his head motioned Kuroo to follow him to do their first patrol around the castle.

Kuroo kept the usual silence for a moment as he tried to actually concentrate in his job, but damn it upset him when Sawamura inched away from him each time they came closer. Just when he thought they were on better terms, Sawamura would just push him away. Then he would let him in once more and away again.

“You know,” Kuroo frowned, scratching the back of his head a little, “as much as I respect you and all, I know you’re just a human being. You can be our captain, but you can feel tired too. You don’t have to feel exposed just because it shows. What I mean is… Everyone here cares about you, you have their support.”

“I can’t let their morale down. If it shows I’m tired–”

“Daichi, we’re just patrolling. These are peaceful days, there’s no danger around the corner. I know we have to be prepared, and I know it’s your job to be like, the most prepared of all of us, but that’s when the time comes, and we need you well for that. Rely on me a little more, that’s all I ask.”

“On you? You’ve only been here for a little more than a month; I’m not about to…”

“You won’t trust me?” Kuroo met his gaze with deep eyes. “After giving me all this? If that’s how it is, then you’re really good at keeping a façade, Daichi.”

“That’s not what…” he sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I know. You’re _terrible_ at lying, I’ve noticed.”

“It’s just _that_ , Kuroo,” he snapped, turning to face him. “You notice _everything_ and you’re just an outsider. You’ve got a sharp eye, a good humor, better fighting skills, you call me by my first name whenever you see an opportunity and you could be a potential danger.”

“Yet you’re being so honest with me right now. So that is this is all about? My past?”

“I just don’t know you.”

“You haven’t asked,” he huffed. “… I don’t even know why I’m this upset. This was about you and your tiredness,” he mumbled.

Sawamura stayed in silence for a moment before looking up at him. “… Why did you start robbing?”

Kuroo snorted and bit his lower lip before lifting his gaze from the ground to meet Sawamura’s. “Because I was a child and I was poor. After that it was just a habit,” he nodded lightly. “It was easier than getting a job and apologize to all the people I had stolen something from. You know, this is the most powerful city, but it’s small and people just know each other. They knew me too.”

Sawamura looked at him and nodded lightly. “What about your family?”

“I don’t have one. The closest to that were Bokuto and Akaashi,” he nodded.

“What happened?”

“Uh, I don’t know how much I can tell…” he chuckled breathlessly. “Now that Bokuto is part of the royalty…”

“I understand,” he nodded lightly.

“I’m conscious that I was a criminal, that I could have stopped this long ago and that Bokuto saved my ass from jail because that’s the kind of person he is. Most of it though… Was how ashamed I was of myself once I realized I just kept doing that because it was easy, because I was lazy. My worst sin was being a coward, and not being able to apologize for it.”

Sawamura looked at him while he felt something tugging at his chest. He decided to ignore it for now. He shrugged and hit Kuroo’s back with his heavy hand. “Well now, you’ve progressed from that. You’re not a coward anymore, you’re grateful to His Majesty and you’re actually trying your best to be of service to the community.”

Kuroo blinked and looked at him without saying anything. One pop-up thought he had was how itchy it felt where Sawamura had almost whipped his hand against his back.

“I trust you, Kuroo,” Sawamura said clearly, looking at him in the eyes. “Don’t disappoint me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! This one is longer! orz  
> It's come to my attention just how many TYPOS HAVE MADE IN THIS FIC OMG. I'm sorry, will try to fix that and eventually edit the other chapters.  
> Also <3 <3 <3


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